Welsh Girl living in Scotland who loves to cook and eat!

April 24, 2018May 13, 2018

Fabulous Poached Eggs

What can be tastier than a plate of perfectly poached eggs? They are quick to cook, nutritious and taste blooming lovely for any meal. Eggs contain protein, selenium, Vitamins D, B2, B6, B12, Zinc, Iron and Copper. They are also a Weight Watcher’s friend and are the perfect healthy fast food. Just take a moment to drool over my poached egg photos while you ponder this…..

I can cook most things, but real poached eggs, cooked the traditional way in a pan of boiling water, eluded me until very recently. I’ve always preferred to use poaching pods or various microwave egg poachers up until now just because it was easier.

I am a bit of a self confessed kitchen gadget junkie anyway and have a cupboard full of them! It all seemed too much of a faff to cook them properly in a saucepan of water. I had a couple of failed attempts using the saucepan method, which either ended in rubbery domes resembling the Eden Project sitting on my plate or a saucepan full of half cooked “egg soup”, so I stuck with my trusty gadget methods until a couple of months ago.

My egg poaching gadgets worked pretty well but didn’t give the lovely traditional shaped poached eggs I craved for. Also using a microwave to cook poached eggs can be a bit hit and miss….sometimes they just explode!! Enough was enough, so I challenged myself to learn how to cook them the right way, once and for all. I took to watching You Tube videos for a bit of a tutorial then just kept practicing until I got it right.

One day, I had a Eureka moment and “cracked it”, if you will excuse the pun! Now I can marvel at my beautifully created little spheres sitting on my plate before tucking into those perfect yolks, all gooey and scrumptious! Yummy!

This is what I learnt and it really isn’t difficult at all once you have got the process “Egg-sactly” right .

Use very fresh eggs which hold their shape, as older eggs go all feathery in the water.

Crack the eggs first into a bowl

Bring the water to a boil in a pan, add a splash of white vinegar (which helps the whites set) then turn the heat right down

Tip the eggs one by one very gently into the water and don’t move them about!

Leave on a very low simmer for 3 minutes, which gives a nice soft yolk, but experiment with timings if you like your eggs cooked more than this

Remove gently with a slotted spoon and allow to drain on a plate or for a few seconds in the spoon (some cooks drain on kitchen paper but I found they can stick)

Serve however you fancy and enjoy!

You can serve poached eggs with loads of things. My favourite combinations include with bacon, ham, avocado, tomatoes, spinach or smoked salmon. You also need a nice chunk of homemade bread or sourdough to dunk into that lovely gooey perfectly cooked yolk!

Poached eggs also taste fabulous for a light lunch with salad. I’ve even served poached eggs with various other toppings on cooked porridge as a savoury porridge recipe. Here are some of my tastiest Savoury Porridge Creations!

Enjoy your poached eggs, however you like them. Just remember, eggs are not just for Easter!